Tuesday’s concert by Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band at Easton’s State Theatre was a case of false advertising.

It wasn’t that The Beatles’ former drummer wasn’t there, leading his cast of four headline performers and two sidemen. He was.

And it wasn’t that the concert was good. It was, in fact, exceptional.

But even though Ringo performed half of the show’s 25 songs, he wasn’t the star.

Ringo Starr at Easton's State Theatre on TuesdayPhotos by Brian Hineline/Special to The Morning Call

The star was his band, particularly Toto guitarist Steve Lukather, who made every song on which he played exponentially better – especially those with Mr. Mister frontman/bassist Richard Page, who himself was by far the best singer of the night and whose three songs were among the show’s highlights.

Ringo was, well, Ringo – mostly entertaining because he’s a former Beatle, and one who’s affable and delightfully free of pretense.

From left, Steve Lukather, Ringo, Richard Page and Todd Rundgren

He cracked jokes with the sold-out crowd through the show, saying, “I make it up; I don’t know where it comes from. But you’ve paid now, so it doesn’t matter.” When someone yelled, “Hey Ringo!” he replied, “What do you want now? I know my name.”

For most of his songs, from the no-holds-barred opening cover of Carl Perkins’ “Matchbox,” he was at the front of the stage, dancing joyfully and singing loose and loopy – occasionally too loose, such as on the night’s second song, “It Don’t Come Easy.” That song had the potential to show some of Starr’s musical gravitas, but he tossed it off just like the others.

The biggest complaint with Ringo, though, was his choice of material. For Beatles songs, he chose the lesser-known “Don’t Pass Me By,” “Boys” (which he introduced as being from “the band I used to be in,” and which had State Theatre President Shelly Brown dancing in a theater box) and the especially weak “I Wanna Be Your Man.”

Lukather, sax player Mark Rivera and Ringo

His solo songs included “I’m the Greatest,” which John Lennon wrote for him but was among the night’s weakest, and two just-OK cuts from his new album “Ringo 2012” – he thanked “you both for buying it” – “Anthem” and “Wings,” which Lukather’s guitar also shone through.

But no “You’re Sixteen” or “Back Off Boogaloo” or “Oh My My” or “No No Song.”

For most of the other songs in the hour-and-55-minute show, he faded away to his drum set, barely noticed – and disappeared completely from stage for a couple.

But that was OK, because the All-Starrs often shined brightly. They started off their parts of the program with “I Saw The Light” from rhythm guitarist Todd Rundgren, whose voice was ragged. He struggled even more vocally on the later “Love is the Answer,” and even on the fun “Bang the Drum All Day.”

Santana keyboard player/singer Gregg Rolie sang that band’s two songs for which he was best known – and his voice remains strong -- a tight and funky “Evil Ways” and “Black Magic Woman.” But those songs’ Carlos Santana guitar riffs were made for Lukather, who made the most of the opportunity – scrubbing and shredding on the former and playing amazingly intricate and expressive on the latter. He even added crazy riffs to the third Santana song, “Everybody’s Everything.”

Lukather’s presentation of Toto material was just as good. On the muscular “Rosanna,” his guitar was among the best of the night. Saxophone player Mark Rivera added the high singing voice, and Rolie returned Lukather’s favor by adding nice organ. The band nicely extended it to eight minutes as the crowd clapped along. And the power chords that opened “Hold The Line” were like an immediate boost.

Unfortunately, Toto’s best song, “Africa,” didn’t reach those heights. Lukather’s voice wasn’t up to it – Page sang the high parts – and Rivera’s sax solo was out of place.

Page nailed all three of his songs. “Broken Wings” was great – Page’s voice as good as ever and able to reach a high, high note at the end. But Lukather’s expressive guitar made it even better. Even Page’s new solo song, “You Are Mine,” was good – sort of a quiet, country Mr. Mister, his voice again high and strong. Lukather’s guitar shone through again. The two should take their act on the road.

But Page’s performance of Mr. Mister’s “Kyrie” was the best of the night. Starting in a spotlight to the song’s opening cathedral chants, Page went even beyond the original.

Ringo connected best with the hits. “Yellow Submarine,” also loose and loopy, had the crowd clapping, waving and shouting along.

And he closed with a stretch of “Photograph” – his best singing, and the seriousness “It Don’t Come Easy” should have had – and then “Act Naturally,” on which he bent to one knee and reared back to sing.

And, of course, he closed with “With A Little Help From My Friends,” again singing with nice reverence before a giddy ending that had him doing jumping jacks and telling the crowd, “Peace and love, the only way.” He came back for a brief snippet of Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance.”

In truth, Ringo got all the help from his friends that he needed, and did far more than just getting by.

Seeing as Paich and Kimball sang on the original, not Lukather, is it really a surprise he sounded less than ideal?

Posted By: Lefty33 | Jul 1, 2012 12:39:55 AM

This was the first time we had seen Ringo and his All-Starr band and we did not know what to expect. I agree with your views on Greg Rolie, Mark Rivera, Richard Page and Steve Lukather and the other drummer on their excellent performances. I have a few differences of opinion about Todd Rungren and Ringo. Todd was not as strong as the others but he sounded good on his songs not the last one. As for Ringo, we know his voice range and he sounded good most of the time. The thing that surprised me was his drumming skills and he was matching the other drummer beat for beat. Lastly, I think Ringo recognized his bands skills and shows a great willingness to work with other musicians. Overall, I will try to see Ringo the next time around as it was a very enjoyable and well done concert.

Posted By: Jim | Jul 2, 2012 5:47:05 PM

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JOHN J. MOSER has been around long enough to have seen the original Ramones in a small club in New Jersey, U2 from the fourth row of a theater and Bob Dylan's born-again tours. But he also has the number for All-American Rejects' Nick Wheeler on his cell phone, wrote the first story ever done on Jack's Mannequin and hung out in Wiz Khalifa's hotel room.

OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

JODI DUCKETT: As The Morning Call's assistant features editor responsible for entertainment, she spends a lot of time surveying the music landscape and sizing up the Valley's festivals and club scene. She's no expert, but enjoys it all — especially artists who resonated in her younger years, such as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Tracy Chapman, Santana and Joni Mitchell.

KATHY LAUER-WILLIAMS enjoys all types of music, from roots rock and folk to classical and opera. Music has been a constant backdrop to her life since she first sat on the steps listening to her mother’s Broadway LPs when she was 2. Since becoming a mother herself, she has become well-versed on the growing genre of kindie rock and, with her son in tow, can boast she has seen a majority of the current kid’s performers from Dan Zanes to They Might Be Giants.

STEPHANIE SIGAFOOS: A Jersey native raised in Northeast PA, she was reared in a house littered with 8-tracks, 45s and cassette tapes of The Beatles, Elvis, Meatloaf and Billy Joel. She also grew up on the sounds of Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks and Tim McGraw and can be found traversing the countryside in search of the sounds of a steel guitar. A fan of today's 'new country,' she digs mainstream/country-pop crossovers like Lady Antebellum and Sugarland and other artists that illustrate the genre's diversity.